Ep. 140, Building Trust While the Internet Watches with Helen Morrison, Frownies CEO, pt 1

How do you lead a 100-year-old family brand when TikTok suddenly turns it into a viral sensation? Helen Morrison of Frownies shares what it takes to navigate legacy, leadership, criticism, and customer trust while growing fast in public.

Episode Summary

In this episode of the Joyosity™ Podcast, Jenn Whitmer talks with Jacqueline Kerr about how workplace change actually happens—inside teams, organizations, and systems.

They explore why people often do not respond to new ideas, not because change is bad or hard, but because those ideas do not match their current priorities, pressures, incentives, or mental filters. Jacqueline shares how leaders can create the enabling conditions for change by starting small, reducing friction, building trust, and demonstrating results instead of forcing buy-in.

This episode is especially helpful for leaders, managers, culture builders, HR professionals, and change agents who want to improve team habits, workplace culture, employee engagement, burnout prevention, leadership communication, and organizational change adoption.

If you have ever wondered, "Why won’t they just do the obvious, better thing?", this conversation will help you understand resistance to change, behavior change at work, and how to build momentum without unnecessary frustration.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

01:19 What shaped Helen Morrison’s leadership journey.

04:37 Why working in the family business as a teenager did not feel like her dream path.

11:16 How to recognize untapped potential.

13:32 What happened when Frownies took off on TikTok and Helen became the face of the brand.

15:48 Why responding to criticism with respect became a key part of the company’s identity.